The largest beer brewer in the Netherlands is a regular customer of transport company Den Hartog & Bikker from Vuren.
In order to tackle unnecessary CO2 emissions, they were asked to participate in a pilot project involving TransFollow’s e-CMR. Because they enjoy a challenge at Den Hartog & Bikker, they said a resounding ‘yes’!
Every week, Den Hartog & Bikker, part of the Meeus Group, undertakes 150 journeys on a fixed route between the Moerdijk brewery and the Ardagh glass factory in Zoeterwoude in the Netherlands. Just in time delivery is vital here. An interesting case to launch a pilot with paperless transport. That’s why all the parties involved joined forces with Beurtvaartadres (our Dutch distributor) and are currently learning and testing the system in a safe environment.
First pilot results
Within Den Hartog & Bikker, Wilko Godefrooi is responsible for the TransFollow pilot. “Personally, I love digital and ICT innovations. So when we were asked to join in the pilot, I was immediately interested. Everyone in the sector knows that the paper CMR is not sustainable, but people still tend to be rather hesitant. Fortunately we aren’t! In a safe environment, we are already going digital with other parties.”
The pilot started in June 2018 and the first results are promising. It’s an important step towards a paperless office. “You now have real time insight into the data. This means faster and even more precise delivery. Everyone is immediately informed and fewer unnecessary trips are made. This ensures the necessary CO2 reduction. And interesting for us: we can invoice faster. ”
Paperless office
A challenge around the pilot is to get and keep all parties on the same line. Working with TransFollow requires a different way of approaching the logistics process. That is why it is important to coordinate this well with the four parties involved.
The pilot will enable Den Hartog & Bikker employees to learn about and become accustomed to the new way of working. Godefrooi: “To be honest, the pilot is currently giving us even more work as a transport company. We haven’t yet established a link with our TMS system, so we’re now using paper and TransFollow side by side. It’s going to be great not having any more paper!”
Godefrooi continues: “There are now two ladies working at the office who spend almost a full week together scanning paper consignment notes. What if that’s no longer necessary? We’ll make fewer mistakes, the documents can be called up immediately and all parties will be able to track their own freight”.
Supply chain management Beurtvaartadres
For the pilot, the ICT system was adapted and the eight drivers involved are now working in a different way. Godefrooi: “I trained the drivers myself. At first, it took some getting used to working with TransFollow. But thanks to clear instructions, good training and an active source of information, things are now going well. The drivers are increasingly recognising the advantages of paperless driving!
During the pilot, Beurtvaartadres supervises and monitors the progress. “Every few weeks, we sit around the table with all the parties in a working group. In this way we continue to learn and align new findings. The Senior Supply Chain Integration Specialist at Beurtvaartadres supervises these sessions. He knows exactly what is and isn’t possible with TransFollow and how we can solve challenges with the software. This is how we will ultimately achieve the most ideal situation. The supervisory role of Beurtvaartadres will then be over. If all goes well, we’ll only use Beurtvaartadres as a supplier and backstop.
Paperless future
The pilot will run until the summer of 2019. Godefrooi continues: “Once enough has been learned, TransFollow will be further rolled out within our company. We must embrace the e-CMR as a sector and make a real effort now. I can’t wait to be really paperless. But I know that the e-CMR will create many new opportunities. At Den Hartog & Bikker, we are going take that opportunity together with Beurtvaartadres!”
Beurtvaartadres is the distributor of TransFollow in the Netherlands. Beurtvaartadres is an initiative of business organisations Evofenedex, Goederenvervoer Nederland, Nederlandsch Binnenvaartbureau and TLN and is therefore an initiative from the market, for the market.
